Wood Burning Project

Wood Burning Project

Broad Question:

Burning 2 different types of wood.

Specific Question:

Does wood type affect burning rate?(maple or oak)

Hypothesis:

Maple will be the fastest burning wood.

Graph of Hypothesis:

Variables

Independent Variable:

Type of wood burning

Dependent Variable:

The burning rate

Variables That Need To Be Controlled:

The heating rate

Vocabulary List That Needs Explanation

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General Plan

There is going to be two different types of wood, Maple and Oak. The point of this experimenter is to see witch type of wood burns faster between the two types of wood. The point is, is to burn the in the fume hood and see witch one burns faster.

Potential Problems And Solutions

I could be in the middle of my experiment and something else could accidentally could catch on fire.

Safety Or Environmental Concerns

I could burn myself or MR.L could burn himself testing this experiment. This experiment is causing a lot of smoke and could be bad for the environment

Experimental Design

(add the correct headings from the experimental design page before beginning)

Resources and Budget Table

Item	Number needed	Where I will get this	Cost
1	Oak	In the woods	0$
1	maple	In the woods	0$
1	lighter	store	4$

Detailed Procedure

.1. Take to 2 pieces of wood (Oak) and (maple) and burn them and see which on lasts longer under the same amount of heat. see which one burns longer. Once one is burned to ash i will record the time until the other piece of wood is burned to see the difference between each species of wood.

Photo List

Time Line

First I just down all of my wood with my father and dried it for 2 or 3 weeks in my basement, Then I marked all my pieces of wood and cut it with a band saw, After that I went to the fume hood and burned it. It was a little hard to burn but I got all of them to burn. Lastly I collected all of my data and mad my graph and all of the other stuff that I had to do.

Data Table

Sample	Start Mass	Mass After	Type	Time
1	9.34	7.46	Maple	5:20
2	8.42	6.77	Maple	5:40
3	4.73	3.67	Maple	4:32
4	6.51	5.39	Maple	2:30
5	6.46	5.63	Maple	1:00
1	7.32	6.99	Oak	1:00
2	10.26	9.88	Oak	1:45
3	8.42	8.08	Oak	1:25
4	14.63	14.13	Oak	1:32
5	9.66	9.25	Oak	2:05

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Data Analysis

All Raw Data

Graphs

Photos

Result

I tested both of my species of wood. It turns out that Maple burns a lot slower and it lasts alot longer. Oak did nt burn well and took a lot to get it going but when it did finally get going oak burned a lot faster! Maple barley kept a flame but it kept a very small flame and the flame was very steady the whole time. With oak it took a while to get a flame but when it took the flame was a lot larger and the wood burnt a lot more and a lot faster.

Conclusion

I found out that Oak burns the fastest and Maple burns the slowest. So if I were to go cut wood to heat my house because the Maple wood burns the lowest and it also burn the hottest. I think that the reason that Maple burns the hottest and the slowest is because Maple has a lot of moister and there is a lot of sap in the wood and the flame is slowed down a lot by all of that moister. Why it burns the hottest I think is because all of the moister and all of the sap in the Maple wood gets so hot and it steams a lot more that is why it gets so much more hot.

Discussion

I wanted to see witch spices of wood burning faster Maple or oak and it turns out Oak burned more quick and Maple lasted longer. I tested this by holding a steady flame under the wood and it turns out Maple lasted the longest. So if i were to go cut down wood to burn i would burn Maple because it would last the longest and it would be a lot better.

Benefit to Community and/or Science

If you are going to be burning wood to heat your home or a shop or building you should use Maple. Maple burns a lot slower and lasts a lot longer! Oak doesn't hold a steady flame and burns a lot faster and it doesn't burn very good. So the benefit of my experiment is for people to use Maple instead of Oak. If you use maple you will have a better outcome.

Background Research

A chemical reaction takes place when a flame meets any piece of wood. The wood is being turned into a hot gas and once the wood gets burning most of the time the flame will not go out because the gas is keeping the flame alive. Oak wood tends to be a lot dryer so that could effect my project. Maple trees always have a lot of sap in the trees and they are wet and that wood cause the maple wood to burn slower.

Abstract

My would that i burned is Maple and Oak. I tested to see witch piece of wood burns faster Maple or Oak? it turns out Oak burns faster and Oak lasts the longest. I took a steady flame and held it under the piece of wood until it caught on fire. Then i let it burn and i would record all of the data and I have done that with each peace of wood and that is how i collected all of my data.